


Redemption or Revenge

by The_Forgotten_Nobody



Category: Descendants (2015)
Genre: Carlos-centric, Drama, F/M, Is not a Carlos/OC love story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-19
Updated: 2015-09-05
Packaged: 2018-04-15 14:09:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4609614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Forgotten_Nobody/pseuds/The_Forgotten_Nobody
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Maleficent wasn’t the only one to escape the Isle.  Two weeks after the coronation a girl from the Isle appears uninvited.  She claims to want the opportunity to become good but is that all she wants, or is there a more sinister reason for her arrival?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. An Unexpected Arrival

**Author's Note:**

> I know I’m a bit too old to be watching Disney channel movies but I have to admit, a film about Disney villains kids interested me. I probably would have loved the film a few years ago but now, not so much, however I think it had a lot of potential and that potential is what is making me write this. I hope you enjoy this. Updates should maybe be every week or twice every week hopefully.

It had been two weeks since the four former villains had chosen good over evil and while they had never before experienced such feelings of true happiness – it couldn’t be said that it was much easier living in Auradon.  Nurture was a hard thing to overcome and it showed however that didn’t alter the fact they tried, even when some of the pupils were just waiting for them to regret their decision and go back to their evil ways. 

Mal had taken being the official girlfriend of the recently coroneted prince well even though she was still adjusting to the feeling of being in love.  Sometimes the feelings frightened her and she tried to run, but Ben always brought her back with reassurances.  It didn’t help that the royal stylist was trying to get her to change her dark outfit to one with more ‘lovely pastel colours’.  Apparently her purple and black ensemble wasn’t becoming enough for the girl who had the potential to become queen – which was a thought that terrified Mal and she refused to dwell on.

Like Mal, Evie had also found romance but with Doug.  With everything over, she had properly asked the dwarves’ son out on a date and by the end of it he’d fumbled his way through asking Evie to be his girlfriend which she had, of course, agreed to.  Sometimes Evie wondered what her mother would think, her dating the son of one of her enemy’s friends, but ultimately she decided it didn’t matter.  Doug may not have a crown, but he had her heart which was all that counted.   

Jay had truly found his place on the Tourney team.  Finally he could use his nimble body and strength for something other than breaking in and stealing.  Sure, a good steal had made him feel what he’d thought was pride, but winning a Tourney match – that was better.  So maybe he couldn’t help but take a few things here and there – old habits die hard and he tried not to take anything that would be missed.  After all, there was no one to sell anything to. 

Carlos’ transition was more a subtle one.  He didn’t have a significant other, nor had he found some extra-curricular activity he had a special talent with.  No, Carlos had Dude and for once – absolute freedom.  He didn’t have to do the cooking, make or repair his mother’s clothes or listen to her curse ‘those damn puppies!’  Carlos finally had the opportunity to do what _he_ wanted and he loved it, he really did, he just struggled to know what to do with his time.  Freedom was great, but Carlos didn’t know if he was very good at being free.

Even with their new friends and activities, the four friends always made sure to spend as much time together as possible.  They were the only ones who could understand what the others had been through.  Sure, people at Auradon Prep were nice but they didn’t understand.  They didn’t truly get what life on the Isle was like, how tough they really had had it, that nice wasn’t something that was appreciated.  It had been a real learning curve to find out what had been normal to them, even just their family life, was considered shocking in Auradon.

Meals were something the friends decided they would always share together (dates excepting) and so it was a usual sunny afternoon that found the quartet sitting outside, basking in the warm air together as they ate their food -  food they still couldn’t believe was all theirs. 

“Do you think any of the other kids from the Isle will come here?”  Carlos asked, once Jay had finished describing his recent victory.  Carlos had decided that even though he and Jay made a great team on the field, Tourney just wasn’t for him – he’d much rather sit on the side with Dude to watch and cheer.

Mal shrugged and swallowed the rest of her strawberry – a fruit which since their date, Ben had made sure was always available to her.  “I guess so.  Ben seemed pretty adamant that they, like us, should get the chance.  We were the test run after all, he always had the bigger picture in mind.” She frowned.  “Though I’m not sure everyone should come.”

Evie nodded in agreement.  “Yeah.  There were some really rotten kids there!”

“But hey, that’s what we thought we were but being here changed that,” Jay argued. “It’ll probably have the same effect on them when they’re away from their parents.”

Mal continued to frown.  “I don’t know.  We may have been the kids of the baddest villains, but some of the other kids are just bad all on their own.”

“Like Facilier’s kid,” Evie said.  “It was so creepy when he spoke to dead people and that was back when I thought bad was best.”

“Nah, he was only doing that to scare you,” Jay explained.  “I don’t think he can actually do that.  His dad’s supposed to have lost that power on the Isle.”

Evie pouted.  “Well, I guess that was pretty mean,” she grudgingly praised.

“We can’t just pick and choose who would be good here though,” Carlos said, thinking about one person in particular he’d like to see – someone who for the past few nights had been on his mind. 

Mal sighed.  “Whatever, it’s Ben decision anyway and when he’s got a plan there’s no hope trying to get him to change his mind.  Personally, I’d just like to forget about it till it actually happens.”

Jay and Evie agreed so Carlos dropped the subject, though it continued to play on his mind for the remainder of the day.

* * *

For the past couple of nights, Carlos could swear he could hear a voice singing.  It was only ever at night while he was lying in bed, trying to get to sleep.  It wasn’t a bad voice, it was beautiful, but when he asked Jay about it, he’d said he couldn’t hear it which confused Carlos.  Mal and Evie had said so too so Carlos determined that the music must be coming from their side of the dorm and Jay was going deaf.

He didn’t mind the music though, even if he was the only one who could hear it.  It always lulled him into a tranquil state that he enjoyed.  He longed to find out where the song was coming from but the only explanation Carlos had for it was impossible so he had to think of other options.  He spent the daytime listening to hear if anyone had such a good voice but while loads of people could sing really well he couldn’t find anyone with that special tone. Only at night he heard it and it looked like that’s how it would stay.

Like the other nights, Carlos listened to the music and allowed it to send him into a peaceful sleep, mind blissfully blank.

* * *

 

The next morning, everyone was eating breakfast when suddenly hushed whispers started spreading across the dining hall and people started leaving quickly.  The four friends looked at each other in puzzlement before they too left to see what all the commotion was about.  They soon found themselves part of a crowd that had formed around the entrance to the school.

“I’m sorry…I just didn’t know where else to go.  I knew you’d taken in some of the other people from the Isle so I thought you might be able to help.”

The four friends froze in shock.  They all recognised that voice.

 


	2. The Girl In The Alleyway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carlos remembers the time he met Una and Mal is not happy with her arrival.

Carlos weaved his way through the crowd.  He had to see for his own two eyes to be sure…and he was.  Una was really there, in Auradon.  Her typical outfit of a lilac blouse and long dark purple skirt was dirty and worn while her wavy chestnut hair was tangled with mud and leaves.  Despite this, she still managed to look attractive and he could see more than a few of the guys ogling her.  Una had always strived to look her best, even in the conditions they lived in and her preferred method of getting around the Isle.  That thought reminded Carlos of the day they’d met.

_Carlos was running from his mother’s house.  He’d been fixing one of her many coats when there had been a malfunction with the sewing machine; it had just started to spark and the coat had been irreparably damaged.  Knowing how mad his mother would be, rather than face the brunt of her anger there and then, Carlos decided to escape before she’d found out.  Of course he’d have to return eventually, but hopefully once she’d had a chance to cool off._

_It didn’t take long for his mum to come looking for him.  Even though she hated dogs, Carlos would swear she had a nose like one, managing to chase him no matter which way he turned.  Normally when Carlos wanted some time away from home he’d stay with one of his friends but he knew that would be the first place his mother would come looking for him.  Their parents wouldn’t bother to lie for him either; most likely they’d delight in knowing he was going to be horribly punished.  Therefore, he had to find somewhere different._

_She was catching up to him, he could tell.  His mum’s voice had always been louder than average and right now it was screaming his name as she rampaged through the streets.  She was nearly upon him when a small hand darted out and pulled him stumbling into an alleyway._

_“Follow me,” whispered his saviour, which Carlos could just make out was a girl around his age, one who was vaguely familiar.  She led him further down the alleyway, stopping by a manhole and picking up the cover.  She looked at him expectantly._

_Carlos recoiled in disgust.  “I can’t go down there, it’s-”_

_“CARLOS!”_

_“Down I go.”_

_Carlos climbed down the ladder and landed in the murky water below, closely followed by his rescuer.  With the cover replaced, Carlos could barely see anything but the girl seemed to have no problem, striding through the dank area with ease.  She didn’t even seem bothered by the revolting smell that had Carlos covering his nose with his hood._

_“So you’re Cruella De Vil’s kid, huh?”  She asked and Carlos nodded, shaking slightly from the chill._

_“Carlos.  And you’re Una right?  Ursula’s daughter?  Mal’s mentioned you.”  She’d done more than mention her, for they absolutely hated each other (Carlos hadn’t quite figured out why yet), but he didn’t want to antagonise the girl who for some reason had saved him._

_“She has, has she?  I suppose that makes sense since she believes we have a rivalry going on.”_

_“So you don’t?”_

_Carlos didn’t need to see to know she was grinning.  “Oh, we do.  I just don’t want her thinking that I would give her the time of day to even consider having a rivalry with her.”_

_“…Okay.”  Carlos didn’t bother to say anymore, since he didn’t want to insult Mal – the closest person he had to a friend along with Jay and Evie.  “Why do you guys hate each other?”_

_“Isn’t that the way of the Isle?  Trust no one, be hateful and rotten?”  Una asked and Carlos hmm’ed in response.  He had a feeling if he wasn’t on the Isle then he’d have no reason to keep up with the whole evil thing._

_Una carried on in his silence.  “Well, I may have disrupted this heist Mal had planned.  She wanted my mother’s shell necklace and I stopped her.  I don’t think her mother has quite forgiven her for that failure.  Since then, Mal has determined to make my life miserable and vice versa.   After all,  can’t have people thinking I’m weak now, can I?”_

_That was right.  If you were weak, you didn’t survive long on the Isle.  Carlos had learnt that the hard way when he was little._

_“So why did you help me then?  You know I’m friends with Mal.”_

_“Let’s just say I need a break from evil occasionally, and it never hurts to have a few allies.  You never know when you may need them.  Plus, any chance to annoy Cruella can’t go unexploited, she is extremely annoying.”_

_“You’ve got that right,” Carlos snorted.  Annoying was too kind a word for his mother._

_They continued through the sewers, Carlos following the vague outline of Una, and was surprised Una would even consider walking around here.  Then again, she was the sea-witch’s daughter and this was the only place with a lot of water – although dirty.  Personally, Carlos didn’t think he’d be doing it often, especially when something slid past his feet._

_There weren’t many animals on the Isle and Carlos had heard about the ankle-biters from his mum so that’s what his brain automatically assumed they were, causing him to muffle a shriek of terror.  To his embarrassment, Una noticed but instead of mocking him like a villain should, she just began to sing.  Carlos had heard about Ursula’s talent with voices and so he was convinced Una’s had to have been stolen.  It was incredible.  Even though there couldn’t have been any magic at play, Una’s voice managed to calm him through the rest of their trip until she stopped at the bottom of another manhole._

_“That was…wow,” Carlos praised._

_“Feel special, I only do that occasionally,” she winked._

_“You should definitely do it more.”_

_“Mother says our voices have special powers.  Maybe not here on the Isle, but on the outside.  In case of the chance we escape, I can’t have anyone knowing about it.  Best to keep these things a secret.  You won’t tell anyone, will you?”_

_Carlos promised to keep her secret and he did, not even telling Mal, Evie or Jay.  What he couldn’t keep secret was him hanging out with her a lot more after that and even considering her close to a friend, not that either of them said the word.  Mal had been livid, as expected, and Evie and Jay had as well out of loyalty, though they weren’t as insistent as Mal that he stop seeing her.  None of them liked it though but it was the one thing Carlos was determined to not be bullied about and he hadn’t regretted his decision since._

“Una!”  Carlos yelled, getting the girl’s attention.  She turned to Carlos with wide eyes, her mouth forming a grin.

“Carlos!”  She cried and brushed past a startled Ben to get to him.  Automatically, he hugged her which caused her to stiffen.  Living in Auradon had shown him he really liked hugs and he’d forgotten that Una had probably never experienced one before.  He released her apologetically.

“Oops, sorry.”

Una waved the apology away.  “It’s ok.  It’s so good to see you!”

“You too, but what are you doing here?   You shouldn’t have been able to get past the barrier.”

Ben stepped forward.  “I’d also like to know that.”  Although Ben was trying to come across as friendly and inviting, Carlos could see the underlying worry.  A villain’s kid should not have been able to get here without invitation.

“Well, when the barrier broke, mum told me this was my chance to go.  She’s pretty sick and was worried what would happen to me if she got worse.  Even though I hadn’t learnt how to swim, mum said it was in my blood and I’d make it to the shore.  I was worried, since the gaps supposed to be un-swimmable but mum was right – I picked it up right away.  I landed on the coast and thought since you’d already taken in some villain’s kids, this would be the place to head towards, although that was hard since I had no directions, though people did point me in the right direction occasionally.  I’d hoped since you’d accepted the others you might be able to accept me too?  I hated the Isle, I want the chance to live here instead and become good.”

“Oh that’s a load of crap.”  Mal shoved past students to reach Ben.  “She’s lying!  She wanted to be bad just like I did.  I don’t believe you’re here to learn to be good.  What do you want? What’s your crazy mother put you up to?”

Una scowled and Carlos would have stepped between the two except Ben beat him to it.

“Mal, honey.”  He put a hand on Mal’s elbow while she looked past him to glare at Una.  “We’ll look into this, get Fairy Godmother involved, but you used to want to be bad too and that’s not the case anymore. We ought to give the same chance to…Una, was it?”

Una nodded, smiling at Ben in a way she knew would antagonise Mal.  Carlos nudged her to get her to stop. 

 “I don’t like this,” Mal stated, giving Carlos a displeased look and Ben sighed. 

“We’ll talk later but right now I need to help get Una sorted, get her some new clothes and stuff.  Will you be alright while I’m gone?”

Mal turned her infamous glare on Ben and without answering, spun around and stormed through the path in the crowd that had parted for her.  Evie and Jay followed her, but not before Jay gave Carlos a questioning look – ‘ _aren’t you coming with us?’_

“You’ll help me get settled in, right Carlos?  It’s just, you’re the only one I really know here,” Una chimed in his ear, tearing Carlos in half.  Did he go with his best friends or stay with the girl who at this moment had no one?  He bit his lip and hoped he’d made the right decision. 

“I’ll stay with you Una.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think!


	3. Meeting Fairy Godmother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben takes Una and Carlos to Fairy Godmother.

Carlos didn’t miss the flash of hurt that crossed Jay’s face as he left with Mal and Evie, leaving him feeling awful.  He’d made the right choice, hadn’t he?  The good choice?

Ben clapped his hands, making Carlos jump.

“That’s enough everyone!  You can return to breakfast now.”  Reluctantly, the crowd of students began to disperse until the trio were left alone. 

“I think the best thing would be to go see Fairy Godmother, I’m sure she knows something’s happened.”  Ben started to lead the pair there, glancing over at them with a curious expression.

“So, you two know each other?  I mean, it’s not surprising since I’m fairly certain the Isle’s not very big, but you’re friends?”

“Oh, we’re good friends,” Una agreed.  “In fact, sometimes it felt like Carlos was the only person I could really talk to.”

Happiness fluttered in Carlos’ chest.  Una had never been this…honest with him before.  On the Isle, they’d been confidents; they’d both shared their home lives to each other.  Carlos would complain about his mother’s treatment of him while Una would vent about her mum’s moments of madness, where she would lock herself away, refusing to see anyone at all.  Stuck in her human form thanks to the Isle, something had snapped in Ursula.  She’d never recovered from the loss of her tentacles.  Still, as Una told him all this, she would always finish by saying she believed her mother did still care for her and Carlos guessed that since she told Una to go, that was true.  However, even with telling Carlos all this, never had he felt as appreciated for it than at that moment.  It looked like the Isle was already a good influence, letting her speak more freely.

“That’s good, I’m glad you’re not alone,” Ben smiled.  He stopped outside the large door to Fairy Godmother’s office and knocked twice.  The doors flung open automatically and the three entered to see Fairy Godmother sat at her desk, looking worriedly over an orb her wand had created.

“Ah Ben, just the…I see you have already brought the young lady.”

Ben took a step forward.  “Fairy Godmother, this is Una.  She swam here when the barrier broke on the Isle.  She wants to become a student here and learn how to be good.”

Fairy Godmother’s eyebrows rose.  “You _swam_ across the Isle?”

Una recounted the story she’d told everyone else and by the end, Fairy Godmother leant back in her seat, shock plain on her face.

“I hadn’t thought anyone else could escape the Isle.  My dear, are you certain you were alone when you arrived here?”

Una nodded.  “I think so.  Maleficent only could because of her staff and dragon transformation.  I think I’m the only one who could swim it apart from my mother, who was too ill.  There weren’t any ships around either.”

“Good, good, I mean, of course we wish to extend the invitation to the rest of the kids there eventually, but we don’t want to risk anymore parents escaping.  We’ve already had one incident too many.”

“Oh, I get it.  I hope you don’t mind me coming a bit early.  I just really wanted to get off, you know?  I had to take the chance I was given – what my mum wanted me to do.”

Fairy Godmother offered Una a sad smile.  “Of course, perhaps there is still some good in villains after all.”  She turned to Carlos.  “And what bring you in here?  There isn’t another problem I should be aware of, is there?”

Shaking his head, Carlos said, “No, I’m just a friend of Una’s.  I wanted to make sure she was okay.”

Eyes lighting up, some of the stress lines on Fairy Godmother’s face disappeared. “Well, that certainly makes things much easier!  I’m sure then that you’ll have no trouble guiding her around the school, taking her under your wing so to say.  Let me just find a room for you Una.”

It still shocked Carlos how accepting Fairy Godmother could be.  If this were the Isle, there would be way more suspicion and caution, like Mal exhibited earlier.  Were they too trusting?  Carlos still wasn’t sure, and he actually knew Una.  However, he supposed, it hadn’t worked out too bad with him and the others.  Fairy Godmother must trust him to be able to watch over Una, keep her out of trouble, which technically was a good idea.  It’s just his friends wouldn’t see it that way.  It looked like until Una settled down, he wouldn’t be able to spend too much time with the others. 

A book levitated to the desk and Fairy Godmother flicked through the pages.  “Right, you can stay in the East Wing, in room 32A.  It’s quite close to Evie and Mal’s room.  Unfortunately, at this time I don’t have anyone for you to share with.”

“That’s fine with me, I’m an only child.  I’m used to my own room.”

“That’s good.  I’ll send your timetable to your room once I’ve prepared.  It’ll be very similar to Carlos’ so he’ll be able to show you where to go if you get lost.  Now, I don’t want you to attend lessons until you feel up to it.  I understand that you’ve been through a difficult time on your own out there.”

“Thanks Fairy Godmother, but honestly, it was ok out there.  Once I’ve had a shower and changed my clothes I’ll be ready to start today.”

“Clothes, of course, we don’t want to keep you in those dirty things.  I’ll send those to your room along with your timetable shortly.  I think that’s everything.  I hope you enjoy your time here Una, it’s delightful to see how eager you are.  I’m sure you’ll make as wonderful an adjustment as your friends did.”

“I hope so,” Una smiled.

“Ben, if you could please show Una her room, I’ll make sure that your teacher knows where you and Carlos are.”

“Right this way then,” Ben said grandly, outstretching his arm dramatically and Una walked past with a giggle.  Together they headed towards Una’s new room which is where Ben left them once Una assured him she was fine.

“Thanks for coming with me Carlos,” Una said, propped against the doorframe. 

“It’s okay.  I’m just glad you’re here,” Carlos replied, rubbing the back of his neck.  It was so weird that after thinking about her at night, she’d appeared only days later…wait…

“Una, were you singing at all when you were on your way here?  It’s just, I swear I could hear your voice the last couple of nights only then I didn’t think it was you as it was supposed to be impossible.”

“You heard me?  I guess I must have been using magic if you could hear me from that far away.  Looks like I’m going to have to learn to control that.” 

“You don’t sound too surprised,” Carlos noticed. 

“Well, I figured since mum had some magic I’d get some too.  I just didn’t know how to work it.  So did you just hear my voice?”  Una asked; a hint of excitement in her voice.

“Only when you were singing.  It was weird, I asked Jay about it – we share a room – and he couldn’t hear you.  Do you know why that is?”

A shy expression appeared on her face, one Carlos had never seen before.  “That might have been because I was thinking about you at the time, how I couldn’t wait to see you.  Maybe my magic focused just on you because of that.”

“Oh.”  A blush spread on Carlos’ cheek.  Una almost looked like she….liked him.  She was acting similar to the way Ben sometimes got around Mal.  Could she like him like that?  Maybe this was something he needed to talk to Mal about….or Ben, to be sure.  If it was that kind of like then Carlos would have to let her down or something, wouldn’t he, because he didn’t like Una like that….did he? 

Discomfort spread through Carlos and so he decided to change the subject.  “You know, you’ve been taking to this whole ‘be good’ thing really well.”

Una shrugged.  “Life on the Isle was boring.  I was tired of just trying to be bad.  I wanted to experience the human land mum spoke about, the one with castles and fancy food and people who actually cared about you.  I suppose I’ll have to get used to everyone not just looking out for themselves.”

“Well, they can still do that here.  Just because they’re good doesn’t mean they’re nice all the time,” Carlos said, thinking of Chad and a couple of other students who didn’t like him.

“Still, it’s different here.  A good change, literally.”

“Yeah, it’s a good change.  I think you’ll like it here,” Carlos smiled.  “See you later for lunch?”

“Wait, so we get three meals here?” Una clarified and when Carlos nodded, practically squealed in delight. 

“I can’t wait.  I’ll see you later Carlos.”  To his surprise, before he left Una drew him into a hug.  She really was a quick learner.  “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

The discomfort was back as Carlos rested a hand on her back.  “Um, you’d probably be fine.  You’re pretty independent.”

“Still.”

Una released him and with the uncomfortable sensation lingering, Carlos properly said goodbye, and left Una to get washed up.  This was way too much for one morning.  He needed to go see Dude, maybe he’d help sort out his muddled thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback is very much appreciated :)


	4. Bedroom Chat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dude isn't the only one waiting in the bedroom.

Carlos’ plans for a relaxing break before class were shattered when he entered his room to find Jay there, playing fetch with dude and clearly waiting for him. At the creaking sound of the door, Jay looked up but Carlos chose to ignore him in favour of the purpose of his visit, Dude, who was bounding up to him excitedly.  Carlos picked him up, grinning when Dude began to lick his face.  His mood briefly improved before he thought about what Jay would want to talk about.

“Hey Jay,”  he greeted his friend, somewhat cautiously.  “What are you doing here?  We don’t have a free.”

“I know; I just wanted to find out what happened and I guessed you’d come here instead of class.  Mal and Evie wanted to stay too but we figured we couldn’t all skip.  It might give people the wrong idea considering Una’s appearance.”

“So they chose you as my interrogator?”  Carlos asked and Jay grinned.

“Sorry, did you want Mal?” Jay laughed at the look on Carlos’ face.  “So come on dude, spill.”

Once sat comfortably on his bed, Dude in his lap, Carlos told Jay everything that had happened that morning and though it looked like he wanted to multiple times throughout, Jay only spoke once Carlos was finished, at which point he let loose.

“So Fairy Godmother didn’t do anything at all?  No evil spell check or something?  She just trusted her like that?  These people here are going to get themselves killed one day,” he said, shaking his head with disbelief.

“Well, I think she only became more trusted when I mentioned Una was my friend,” Carlos defended.  “I guess she figured I’d be able to keep an eye on Una or something.  Also, she didn’t have any belongings on her, she had nothing with her.”

“That lady has got such a soft spot for you,” Jay commented and Carlos just shrugged, though he couldn’t keep a small, pleased smile from forming.  After the failure that was family day, Fairy Godmother had been a lot more curious about their home lives.  Despite no one giving much information away, something must have tipped her off about Carlos’ because she now always made sure he knew her door was always open for him.  Though the offer was one that he appreciated, more than she probably knew, it wasn’t one he’d taken her up on.  A small part of him thought if he did, it would be showing weakness.

“I guess.  So how mad are Mal and Evie?”

With a ‘do you really need to ask’ expression, Jay replied, “Mal is madder than Evie is obviously, since Evie never had as much of problem with her as Mal.  She just needs help getting over the ‘fairer of them all’ comment Una made. Both of them weren’t happy you didn’t come with us, Mal was definitely annoyed, but Evie was just a bit disappointed.”

Carlos wasn’t sure which one was worse.  “And what about you Jay?  Are you mad at me?”

“Well, I guess I wish you’d come with us, but I can understand why you didn’t.  You were trying to do the good thing.  It’s just I don’t trust Una’s story all that much.  I mean, why would her mum encourage her to leave unless she wanted Una to find a way to get her off the Isle too, like our parents planned?  Ursula is a villain just like they are; I don’t believe she would just send her daughter to freedom out of any kindness.”

“But if she’s sick like Una said then maybe she just wanted Una to take the chance she couldn’t.  Maybe she did ask Una to do something, but Una sounded sincere when she wanted to be good.  Also, Una always said she thought her mum loved her.  Maybe this proves it.”

Jay raised an eyebrow.  “We thought our parents loved us too until we realised all we were to them was pawns.”

Silence fell.  Carlos had never been under any illusion his mother really loved him, not since he was little.  She just loved what he did for her, that he made her life easier. 

Appearing to realise this, Jay quickly apologised.  “Sorry Carlos, I wasn’t thinking.”

“It’s okay.  It’s just, what if Ursula is actually different?”

“Maybe she is, I don’t know.  I just know that Una’s done some pretty bad things to us and she had to learn it somewhere.”

“Us?  What has she done to you?” The look on Jay’s face was all Carlos needed to see to know Jay was hiding something.  “What aren’t you telling me?”

Jay hesitated briefly before huffing, his cheeks turning slightly pink.  “Okay, fine.  There’s another reason I don’t like Una all that much.  She was the only girl to ever dump me.”

That was certainly not what Carlos expected Jay to say, and his mouth opened in shock.  “You went out with Una?!”  He exclaimed, trying to think if either of them had ever mentioned it.

“Hey, it wasn’t going out.  You know I didn’t do that.  It was just that she’s a pretty girl and had a few nice bits to steal.  Anyway, I was planning on doing it a few more times before stopping it but she beat me to it.  Told me I was a bad kisser and then spread a rumour that I had some disease that could be transmitted by kissing. Took me ages to get girls after that.  Dad was not happy.”

Carlos remembered that.  Jay hadn’t been with any girls for ages and when they’d questioned him, he just said his dad was sick of him getting stuff from teenage girls.

“Why didn’t you tell us?”

“Tell Mal I effectively slept with the enemy?  No thanks.  And I knew you were friends with her so…”

“Oh.”  Carlos bit his lip.  “You could have told me.”  He wasn’t sure what he’d have done, but he wished Jay hadn’t lied to them.  Then again, that was the sort of thing that happened on the Isle.  The most they could have done would have been revenge, which Carlos wouldn’t have wanted to participate in.  And Mal would have included Jay in that too.  Maybe he could see why Jay didn’t tell them. 

“It’s not a big deal anyway.  The ladies couldn’t stay away from me too long,” he stated proudly.  “But, listen dude, I’ll try and be, maybe not nice, but I won’t antagonise her.  As long as she doesn’t mess with me.”

“Thanks Jay.”

“No problem.  You better be careful though, Mal’s probably gonna cause a mini-explosion.”

Carlos flung his face onto his pillow at the thought of the conversation he’d have to have with Mal.  The movement disrupted Dude and he huffed before lying by Carlos’ feet.

“You don’t think I could just avoid her, do you?”  He asked, turning his head to the side so he could breathe.

“It’s your choice dude, but this is something I don’t think you should put off.  Mal will just get worse the longer you give her to stew, especially if she sees you with Una.”

Jay was right, but that didn’t mean Carlos had to like it.  “What about some kind of niceness potion.  They do one for love, why can’t they do one for just being nice?” 

“Maybe just try with Evie first. She’ll be the easier one to convince since most of their issues lie with that whole ‘I’m fairer than you’ fight they had.  Why don’t you just sit with us at lunch and we can talk about it, maybe bring Ben as a buffer.”

Rather than that being the reassurance Jay intended, Carlos just groaned in despair.  “I can’t.  Since I’m Una’s guide I’ll have to show her lunch and I should probably sit with her.  Unless we want a battle in the dining room, it’ll probably be best we keep them apart.”

“Good point.  What about after dinner?”

Carlos sighed.  “It’s gonna have to be.”

Carlos hated this, having to choose.  He didn’t want to miss eating with his friends, but he’d feel guilty if he left Una to fend for herself.  He remembered how they’d been treated when they first arrived.  It would have been way worse if it had just been Carlos alone.  He couldn’t leave Una to deal with that.  He wanted to be a good person and being a good person meant being selfless, right?

“Hey Carlos, wanna play some video games?”

Grateful for the distraction, Carlos readily agreed and the next half hour was spent with the two of them playing their usual fighting game, thoughts of the rest of the day out of their minds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For some reason I really struggled with this chapter, and I’m still not completely happy with it. As always, feedback is appreciated. :)


	5. Lunchtime Fiasco

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things go just as you would expect when Una wants to sit with Carlos' friends.

Even though he was totally kicking Jay’s butt, Carlos decided they ought to go to their next class and tried to ignore the whispering and staring that was going on around him.  It reminded him of when they’d first arrived and were the subject of every conversation.  It had been annoying then, and it still was now, and he was relieved when the lesson ended and he was free to go to Una’s room.  He’d only managed to say a goodbye to Jay before he did so, Evie and Mal leaving straight away. He knocked on Una’s door and it opened to reveal Una wearing a similar, but much cleaner, outfit to the one she had arrived in.

“This room is amazing!”  She exclaimed, gesturing to the room which Carlos could tell was well-explored.  He was surprised at her enthusiasm since when they’d arrived, they thought their rooms had been to light and fancy. 

“You don’t think it looks too…nice?”

“I mean, it’s different, I will admit that, but it’s so big and it doesn’t smell of fish!”

Carlos laughed.  “So, do you want to head down to lunch?”

“Definitely.  I’ve been living off berries for the past two weeks.  Did you know they don’t have any poisonous ones here?”

It didn’t surprise Carlos.  “I guess they sent all of those to the Isle with the villains.”  You had to be very careful with the few bits of food which managed to grow on the Isle. 

“Probably.  So, do we get three meals here?  Three full meals?”

“Yep, and there’s loads of choice.  Just be careful you don’t eat too much.”  The first day he’d arrived, Carlos had pretty much eaten anything he could get his hands on, as had the others, and that night was not one he wanted to relive in a long, long time.

“Wow,” Una breathed.  “So, are all the hero’s kids here?  I mean, I know Ben is Beast and Belle’s kid but are there others here too?”

“I don’t know if all of them are here but there’s a lot.  There’s Audrey, daughter of Aurora and Philip.  Chad’s the son of Cinderella and Charming, Lonnie is Mulan and Shang’s kid.  Doug is the son of one of the seven dwarves and Jane is Fairy Godmother’s daughter.  They’re the people I’ve properly met but I’m pretty sure there’s more.  I think I might have seen Snow White’s kid.”

A pensive expression crossed Una’s face.  “Do you know if Melody has a kid?”

“Melody?...Oh, you mean Ariel’s daughter?”

“Yeah.  I kind of want to apologise for what my mum and aunt did to her family.”

“You do?”  Carlos couldn’t keep the surprise from his voice.  He didn’t think he’d want to see the Darling family anytime soon, even if he knew he wasn’t to blame for his mother’s craziness. 

“I was thinking about it on my way here and I thought it would be a good way to prove I’m serious about this, about being good,” Una said firmly.

“Oh, right.  Um, I could ask Ben.  I’m pretty sure he knows everyone around here.”

“Thanks Carlos.  Maybe you could do it at lunch?  Just so I can make a better first impression that I made this morning.”

The two entered the dining hall and much to Carlos’ despair, today had to be the day Ben sat with Mal for lunch.  He couldn’t hear what they were saying but it looked like Ben was trying to reassure her but from Mal’s expression, it wasn’t working.

“I think we should do it another time,” Carlos said and Una gave him a confused look.

“Why?”  She followed Carlos’ gaze.  “Oh, is it because he’s with Mal?  She’s your friend, isn’t she?”

“Yeah, but-”

“Then there shouldn’t be a problem!  Just ask him if Melody has a child here.  That’s all.  Surely Mal can’t get mad at you for that?”

Carlos slumped, unable to think of a good excuse that didn’t make Mal seem horrible.  “I guess…just stay here.”

Fortunately, Una did as he asked and stayed put as Carlos went over to his usual table.  Jay watched him with surprise. 

“Carlos!  I thought you said you…had other plans.”

“With the sea witch,” Mal added with a sneer. 

“Mal, I thought we talked about this…” Ben muttered, giving Carlos an apologetic look.

“Have you come to join us Carlos?”  Evie interrupted with a pleased smile, which dimmed with Carlos’ response.

“Um, actually, I just came to ask Ben a question.”

“Me?”  Ben asked, eyes wide.  Mal huffed and folded her arms.

“Of course you wouldn’t be joining us.  _She_ wouldn’t want you to.”

“And this is why I want to keep you two apart,” Carlos mumbled.  Louder, he said, “Una wanted to know if Melody had any kids here.”

“Why would she want to know that?”  Evie asked; suspicion clear in her voice.

“She wants to apologise to them for her mum and aunt’s behaviour,” Carlos explained, exasperated.  It was like being on Auradon had made his friend’s dislike and suspicion of Una worse.

“Well, I know she has a son.  He’ll probably be in here, let me have a look.”  Ben stood up and scanned the hall.  “There, I’m pretty sure that’s him.  The small kid with the black hair.”  Carlos looked in the direction Ben was pointing.  The kid really was tiny, almost hidden between the girl and boy he was sitting with.

“Thanks Ben.  I’ll, uh, see you guys later?”

Mal scoffed.  “Don’t let us keep you from her.”

“Bye Carlos,” Evie said sadly and Jay echoed her before they all turned back to their lunch.  Carlos hated that he was being forced to choose between his friends.  At least Ben gave him an encouraging thumbs up.

“You don’t look alright, is everything okay?”  Una asked with concern when he returned.  He attempted to give her a comforting smile.

“I’m fine.  So, Ben said that Melody has a son and he’s over there.”  Carlos pointed out the table and immediately, Una was heading over there leaving Carlos to catch up.  She stopped by the table and the trio of kids there looked up.  Word must travel fast because his eyes widened and he visibly recoiled.

“It’s alright, honest!”  Una hurriedly said, her hands out in a surrender gesture. “I only wanted to come and apologise about my mum…and my aunt.  That’s all, I promise.” 

The kid looked at her doubtfully and remained silent, even though the girl beside him nudged him.

“Look, why don’t we introduce ourselves.  My name is Una, what’s yours?”

“…Ray.”

“Nice to meet you Ray.  I’m sorry if I’m scaring you but I just wanted you to know I’m not like them.  That’s all. I’ll see you around, okay?”

“Okay?”

They left after that and almost immediately after, people starting to rush towards the three kids and Carlos had a feeling that Una had made his popularity triple instantly.

“I feel good,” she declared, then spied the food table.  “Now, can we go eat?”

Just like he’d thought he’d have to, Carlos had to prevent Una getting too much food but when he went to find them an empty table, Una halted. 

“You know, I think we should sit with your friends,” she said. 

“Una, that is really not a good idea.”  Even from here he could see their stares.  They weren’t very subtle.

“No Carlos.  I don’t want to get between you and your friends.  I know you’d rather sit with them but you’re too nice to say so.”   Una cut of his protest.  “If they’re as good as they say they’ve become then they should be able to deal with the fact we’re friends.”

“I really don’t think-”

“Carlos!  Come on.  It won’t be so bad.”

Almost automatically, Carlos stood from the empty space he’d found.  Now up, he sighed in resignation.  “Fine.  Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.”  Who knew, maybe things wouldn’t go as bad as he predicted.  It was a long shot but one Carlos was desperate to believe.

They’d barely reached the table when Mal said, “What is she doing here?  I thought you two were going to eat away from us.”

Ben placed a hand on Mal’s shoulder.  “Carlos, Una.”  He nodded to them with a small smile.

“Hey guys,” Carlos greeted them weakly once more.  “I was thinking that maybe instead, we could both sit here?”

  1.   Thankfully, Ben broke it.  “Of course.  That’s alright, right guys?”



Jay, acting on his promise to be more supportive, had his back.  “Uh. Yeah.  That’s cool I guess.”

“Sure you can, that would be very nice.  We’d love to get to know you a bit better since you’re such a good friend of Carlos’,” Evie said sweetly, far too sweetly.  That was Evie’s play nice think evil voice.  Una, however, didn’t know that.

“Thanks!  I really don’t want to stop Carlos from seeing you guys after all, even with the bad blood.”

“Of course you wouldn’t,” Mal said with a fake smile.  “After all, you hadn’t been trying to do that the past year on the Isle.”

Una frowned.  “I don’t know what you thought, but I hadn’t been trying to do that at all.  In fact, Carlos was the one who came to _me,_ because he needed _me_.  I wonder why he didn’t want to come to you?”

Mal’s eyes flashed green and Carlos gulped.  They hadn’t even made it a full minute. 

“What, exactly, are you trying to imply _seaweed hair_?”

“Oh, nothing at all, _dragon breath_ , just maybe that you’re not the sort of friend Carlos really needs if he didn’t even come to you when he needed help.  After all, who can really trust the daughter of Maleficent?”

That was all it took for Mal’s spaghetti to land on Una’s face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, feedback is greatly appreciated!

**Author's Note:**

> If you want me to continue this, leave a kudos!


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